Freedom. Chapter 3: History Of Scotland.
(Note: Before I start with the chapter, I wanted to show you two interesting novels about the real William Wallace. One is called "The Forest Laird: A Tale Of William Wallace" by Jack Whyte (and yes, that's how he spells his last name), and the other is called "The Wallace" by Nigel Tranter. I'm currently reading "The Forest Laird" right now on my iPhone through iBooks. It's pretty interesting so far. After I read that, then I'm going to read "The Wallace." Here are the summaries of "The Forest Laird," and "The Wallace.")
"The Forest Laird: A Tale Of William Wallace."
Author: Jack Whyte.
Published: September 1, 2010.
Summary:
"In the pre-dawn hours of August 24th, 1305, in London's Smithfield Prison, the outlaw William Wallace—hero of all the Scots and deadly enemy of King Edward of England—sits awaiting the dawn, when he is to be hanged and then drawn and quartered. This brutal sundering of his body is the revenge of the English. Wallace is visited by a Scottish priest who has come to hear his last confession, a priest who knows Wallace like a brother. Wallace's confession—the tale that follows—is all the more remarkable because it comes from real life.
We follow Wallace through his many lives—as outlaw and fugitive, hero and patriot, rebel and kingmaker. His exploits and escapades, desperate struggles and victorious campaigns are all here, as are the high ideals and fierce patriotism that drove him to abandon the people he loved to save his country."
(Note: Now, for some reason, although the summary says that William Wallace died on August 24, 1305, I learned that it was actually August 23, not August 24. Correct me if I'm wrong though. Anyway, here is the summary of "The Wallace," another novel about William Wallace.)
"The Wallace."
Author: Nigel Tranter (who sadly passed away in 2000 at the age of 90)
Published: 1975.
Summary:
"At the end of the 13th century Scotland was suffering under the tyranny of the English and Edward Plantagenet. The eponymous hero swears to rid his land of their cruelty and to restore Robert the Bruce to the throne."
(Note: So yeah. That's pretty much all I have to say, but for now, please enjoy the chapter! :D)
Disclaimer:
I do not own Braveheart or Naruto. Braveheart belongs to Mel Gibson, and Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. No copyright infringement intended. All copyrights are reserved.
As night turned into day, the rays of the sun peered through the window of William's cabin and shone on his face while he was sleeping.
Then before he woke up, a sailor shouted:
"Land ho! We've arrived in Scotland!"
William awoke with a start, saw that it was morning, stretched, and got out of bed as he left his cabin and closed the door.
He went outside on deck where he saw Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi standing with Hamish, Campbell, Morrison and Stephen.
"Wow. So this is Scotland," Naruto spoke in amazement. "It's awesome!"
"Aye, but we're only on the docks. Trust me. Once we get to the village, then you'll really like it," William said.
"Really?" Sakura asked in wonder.
"Come on. I'll show you around. Hamish, Campbell, Stephen, Morrison. As soon as we get to the village, I want you and the Scots to meet me at the campsite," William ordered.
"Whoa whoa whoa wait. Where are you going?" Hamish questioned William.
"I'd thought I might want to give Sakura, Kakashi and Naruto a tour. Don't worry. We'll be back as soon as possible," William replied as he went with Sakura, Kakashi and Naruto into the grasslands where the mountains were.
Later that day...
Kakashi, Naruto, Sakura and William were all sitting in a field of grass, having a coversation about Scotland.
"So, William. We understand that there's kings, queens, mountains, lakes, rivers, knights in Scotland, and everything else, but what more can you tell us about it?" Naruto inquired.
"Well, it all started thirteen years ago, in 1284. I was only fourteen. Alexander III, the King Of Scotland, who was crowned king on July 6, 1249, wanted the Estates to recognize his granddaughter Margaret, the "Maid Of Norway" as the heir to the throne, because his other children died, leaving the people to question who would become the next king of Scotland after Alexander III was dead. But then, a year later, in 1285, Alexander III married a woman named Yolande de Dreux on November 1. Then, tragedy struck. As he was going to see his new wife because her birthday was the next day, Alexander III fell off of his horse and died of his injuries. Before that, he spent the night at Edinburgh Castle, celebrating his second marriage, and also had a meeting with the royal advisors who told him not to travel all the way to Fife just to see her, but he did so anyway, not to mention it was also a stormy night. The next morning, after he was found dead by his advisors, his neck was broken, and thus a war between the Scottish and English began. It's still going on as we speak," William explained.
"But, what does this have to do with Longshanks?" Sakura asked. William looked at her. "I mean, is he really that evil?"
William nodded.
"He's more than that. He's nothing but a cruel tyrant, which is why once we win our victory against the English, I want to kill him myself," William declared with a glare on his face, and clenched wrists.
"But, you are a part of Team Kakashi, William. Remember that. You're not going to be the only one killing Longshanks, because we'll be there by your side," Kakashi voiced.
"Thank you, Kakashi," William replied as Kakashi smiled at him. "So. Do you have kings, queens, princes and princesses in your world?"
"Well, kind of. We have kages," Naruto responded.
"Kages?" William questioned in confusion with a raised eyebrow.
"Oh. Kages are sort of like leaders in our land. You could say they're kind of like kings and queens. Remember how I said the other day that I wanted to become Hokage? Well, let's just say that's my way of saying that I want to become the King of Konoha," Naruto answered.
"Ah," William realized.
"Oh, and remember how the other day I did the Transformation Jutsu and pretended I was you?" Naruto catechized.
"Aye," William groaned.
"First off, I want to say I'm sorry about that," Naruto apologized.
"It's fine. Just don't do it again," William spoke in a serious tone.
"I won't," Naruto sighed and continued talking. "Second, jutsus are kind of like techniques. Let's just say that they're more powerful than using a sword and shield."
"Well, when we fight the English, since there are no ninjas in our world, you won't be able to use your ninja techniques. Instead...," William said as he took out three swords and shields for Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi. "You'll be using swords and shields."
He smirked at them.
"Are we going to be training now?" Naruto asked.
"Well, since we've arrived in Scotland, I thought I might want to show you around first. Besides, don't you think you should rejuvenate from your trip?" William suggested.
"Yeah. I guess you're right," Naruto said, disappointedly.
"However, we have to watch out for the English. Because I killed one of their nobles who murdered my wife, they want to kill me for revenge. That's why Tsunade said that you have to keep me alive during this war," William stated, which made Naruto (whose expression turned to sadness) ask:
"So then, once our mission is completed, and after you and the Scottish win your freedom against the English and we kick Longshanks' butt, then Sakura, Kakashi-sensei and I won't see you again, huh, William?"
"Look, Naruto. Just because I'm going to kill Longshanks and the English once the Scottish And English War is over after his death doesn't mean I'm never going to see you again. After all, I am a part of Team Kakashi, am I not?" William inquired.
"But, because you're a member of Team Kakashi, then that means you have to come back with us to Konoha, William," Naruto said.
"But Naruto, if I end up becoming a hero to Scotland and go to Konoha to live with you, Kakashi and Sakura, then the people of Scotland and my friends will be sad because they won't have a hero to watch over them. I mean, if I leave now, then who will protect Scotland from the English and Longshanks?"
Then, Naruto had an idea.
"Hey. I know. After our mission is over, then Grandma Tsunade will send some ninjas to assist you in case you do have another war with the English. Who knows? Maybe someday if I become Hokage, and if you not only become a knight, but also the King Of Scotland, then Konoha will be your ally." Naruto smiled at William. "After all, that's what friends are for, right?"
"Right," William agreed with a nod when he realized something. "Wait. Did you just say that I could become the King Of Scotland, Naruto?"
"I don't know. Maybe," Naruto shrugged his shoulders. "It was just a suggestion. You said you had a dream for freedom, so if you did become king, then we'd imagine you giving s speech about freedom before you are crowned king."
"Aye, but, I'm not a king. I was actually born the son of a nobleman," William replied scratching his head.
"Oh," Naruto stated. "Well, just think about what I said, okay?"
"Okay," William answered, as he changed the subject by focusing on the upcoming Battle Of Stirling. "Now, about the Battle Of Stirling. It will be taking place on September 11, but before that, we have to prepare. Since I've given the three of you each a sword and shield, I'm going to teach you how to use them. However, there is a catch. You can't use any of your jutsus, with the exception of Sakura being the healer of the army. In other words, all three of you will be trained by me. You're not going to be the only people training. Hamish, Stephen, Campbell, Morrison and the rest of the Scottish will also be training too. So don't expect me to go easy on you."
Naruto gulped.
"Wait. Since Kakashi-sensei's our team leader, I thought he was going to train the three of us. Not the other way around," Sakura perplexed.
"I know. But like I said before, Sakura, all three of you will be trained by me. So get ready for some intense training. We start tomorrow. For now, let's take the rest of the day off and enjoy ourselves while we still can," said William as he was about to continue walking with Team Kakashi until Naruto voiced:
"William. Wait."
William turned to look at Naruto.
"How long will we be training?"
"For three months," William replied.
"Three months?!" Naruto shrieked with anime bulging white eyes.
"You've gotta be kidding me," Sakura groaned.
"Well, rules are rules... unless you want me to make the training longer and we'll delay our battle with the English at Stirling," William warned.
Sakura sighed.
"No. Alright, fine. We'll be really serious about our training."
"Good," William voiced as he left with Kakashi, Naruto and Sakura to explore the rest of Scotland.
When the sun went down, and the moon appeared, the quartet headed back to William's camp and fell asleep.
Scotland was a beautiful place, just like how William described it.
There were lakes, mountains, rivers, kings, queens, princes, princesses, knights, pretty much everything.
The first time that Kakashi-sensei, Naruto and I set foot in Scotland, we were blown away, especially me.
Scotland reminded me so much of Konoha.
Only except there weren't any ninjas there, but just the three of us – Naruto, Kakashi-sensei, and me.
To me, Scotland felt like Heaven. I was completely mesmerized by its beautiful landscape.
I could almost feel like I actually lived there, as if I was there with William forever.
Although we ended up staying with William in Scotland for eight years, deep down, Naruto, Kakashi-sensei and I were homesick.
I missed Konoha, but most of all, I truly missed Sasuke... even though he broke my heart and betrayed Konoha.
Oh, Sasuke. If you were here right beside us in Scotland at the time, I know that you would have loved it here.
(Note: Hey guys. I just wanted to apologize that it took so long to submit the chapter, but other than life getting in the way, I was also experiencing some technical difficulties with my computer today. Long story short, I'm getting a new flashdrive because the one I have (which was working just fine earlier today) now is kind of defective. But don't worry. I have all my stuff in a back-up folder. Aside from that, before I started working on this story, I actually did some research on the real William Wallace's life. It was not just about me re-watching "Braveheart," (to try get historically accurate even though I've seen the movie a thousand times, maybe even more than that), but I also watched documentaries about him, and they were all pretty interesting. There's also a documentary that's actually on the "Braveheart" Blu-Ray DVD called "Tales Of William Wallace" which is in the special features. Sadly, I don't have that DVD, but I have the original DVD... although I want to get Braveheart on Blu-Ray. Anyway, in this chapter, yes I put some stuff about King Alexander III, which is why the chapter's called "History Of Scotland." In about two chapters from now (I think), we will finally get to the Battle Of Stirling (which is one of my favorite parts and battles in the movie). Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Please read and review! Bye! :D)